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Spending a week in Florence or in Tuscany?

My husband and I will be honeymooning, along with another couple, for 2 weeks in Italy. We will spend 1 week in Rome and then travel by train to Florence (I am assuming). We will fly out of Florence at the end of our trip.

We are not sure how to plan the 2nd week of our trip.

Option 1: 3 nights in a countryside town with a rental car and 3 nights in the city center of Florence with no car.

Option 2: Spend a week with or without a rental car in a countryside town and day trip into the city of Florence?

Option 3: SPend a week in Florence, with or without a car, and travel out to the countryside?

As you leave Rome, train to Orvieto to get your car and drive to your Tuscany base for 3 nites. The car rental for Hertz is right next to the station, but I would use Autoeurope as a broker. I prefer a location south of Siena to see the best of Tuscany. Then drop the car at the Florence airport NW of the city---do not try to drive in Florence. Fly home from Florence---a taxi to the airport is about 20E. The specific place in Tuscany is key, but that is another question.

Q. SHOULD WE DRIVE IN ITALY?
A. Of course you should if your driving skill & confidence would allow you to drive a rental car in Vermont, Colorado or California. But, be advised of these tips:
* Avoid driving in the major cities except for picking up or dropping cars
* Have good maps—study them in advance—and have a GOOD NAVIGATOR.
* Stay in the right lane except when passing and use your rear view mirrors

Q. WHAT CAR SHOULD I GET AND WHERE DO I GET IT?
A. It is best to rent your car before you leave for Europe. The best source we have found is www.autoeurope.com [800-223-5555] who is a broker for several car vendors. They will quote you prices to include the variables that are often omitted by others, such as unlimited mileage, mandatory insurance coverage with some deductibles, and VAT taxes. It is wise to compare prices and coverage with their sister company at www.kemwel.com. Autoeurope will match any comparable quote, and are famous for their customer satisfaction if problems do arise with the vendor. The best model will depend on your needs, but for best value we suggest you select a compact car with manual transmission. Automatics are available but will cost you about 30% more and may limit your model options & pick up locations.

Q. ARE ITALIAN DRIVERS AS CRAZY AS I HAVE HEARD?
A. Yes & no! They are certainly aggressive, but they are also more skilled than many USA drivers—both are a function of necessity. Italy is one of the most crowded countries in the world and the drivers have evolved these characteristics
* They are notorious tailgaters. If that bothers you, pull over and let them past.
* On the AUTOSTRADE they will drive fast, but will stay in the right lane except when passing and will use their blinkers when passing—YOU SHOULD TOO !
* They will often pass on 2-lane roads with traffic coming. Frankly, they expect you, and the oncoming car, to adjust to the shoulder and make 3 lanes of traffic.

OTHER ROAD TIPS FOR YOUR DRIVING SANITY:
1. Learn the meaning of the sign “ SENSO UNICO” and take heed [ONE WAY ].
2. Be sure to get your ticket when you enter the AUTOSTADA system & be prepared to pay the toll when you exit it [ rule of thumb—300 km=15 Euro]. You can use your credit card in the VIA lane at the toll both, or buy a debit VIACARD in advance.
3. Do NOT attempt to follow road numbers—that will frustrate you. But, do pay attention to the directional signs that point to your destination [ TO MONTALCINO]. And, be aware if that road leads eventually to a larger city [ ROMA—SIENA ETC.]
4. Unless you have a diesel car, you will want to fill the tank with benzina from the green pump. Most stations will pump gas for you and will take credit cards.

NOTE: As of 2005, an International Drivers Permit[IDP] is required in Italy.
You can obtain them from your local AAA office. You will need a valid US driver’s license, two passport photos, and $15. The photos can be taken at the AAA office.

I think your decision hinges, at least in part, on how interested you all are in seeing the treasures of Florence. A single day trip coming from somewhere else would not be nearly enough time for me, but this is your trip.

Another issue, I think, is when you're going. Florence will be jammed with tourists in high season summer, and temps and humidity could be too high for comfortable sightseeing in the middle of the day. It might be more enjoyable to be staying somewhere in the countryside with a pool.

Personally, I don't like your Option 1. Too little time in either place and too much time spent picking up and returning a car, timing both to when the offices are open. In Option 2, you should definitely have a car. In Option 3, you should NOT have a car but instead use public trans to day-trip to places like Pisa, Lucca, Bologna, Siena, San Gimignano, etc., or hire a driver for a day tour of Chianti and/or other parts of Tuscany.

If you decide to rent a car, the driver(s) will need International Driving Permits, and you'll need to become familiar with the limited traffic zones (ZTL) which most Italian towns have established.

I certainly don't have a ton of experience with traveling in Tuscany, but I will share that we spent five days in Florence last summer. It was very hot, but we planned our time to be in museums during peak heat hours. I love the city of Florence, and you absolutely do not need a car. We took the train in from Milan, but it was really easy and very simple to find the downtown from the train station. We chose to stay in an apartment, which was next to the Duomo, and it was amazing. We too wanted to see Tuscany, and took a full day tour with Tuscany Car Tours (http://tuscanycartours.com). It was a perfect way to get just a taste of Tuscany (we stopped in Sienna, San Gimignano, and Monteriggioni, as well as a Chianti winery). I would highly recommend the car tour company if you are looking for a transport service/tour. We are returning this summer to explore Tuscany more, after our brief visit last year. I think whatever you decide to do, you'll enjoy your time in both areas.

I think just a couple of days would be more than enough time in Florence. There is too much else to see (IMHO) around the Tuscan hillside towns. I would also recommend maybe Cinque Terra (sp?) and maybe Venice.

How to divide your time depends mostly on your interests. If you want to see a fair amount of the great Renaissance art in the museums and churches of Florence, you should spend at least several nights in the city. If art museums and churches aren't exactly your cup of tea, one day might suffice.

I don't think one week is too much time in Rome; again, depending on your interests, you could easily spend more than a week there and not run out of things to see and do.

The International Drivers Permit has been mandatory in Italy at least since 1998, and probably for several years before that. I moved to Italy in 1998 and drove for a year with my IDP. It expired several months before I got my Italian license, but my US drivers license was still valid. I asked a friend of ours, who is a Marshall of the Carabinieri whether I could continue to drive with just the US license, and he told me that it would be risky because the law required the IDP. I didn't want any infractions on my record, because I intended to apply for Italian citizenship, so for a few months I didn't drive at all.

We spent 6 nights in Greve in Chianti in 2012 where we picked up and dropped off our rental car near the train station in Florence. We did return to Florence for a day trip where we used recommendations from fellow travelers for parking without going into the city center. It worked very well.

BTW we used a Garmin GPS with European maps which made trips to the hill towns very easy.

Last fall we took a similar trip (but for our 40th anniversary!). We skipped Rome, however. We spent two nights in Orvieto and picked up the rental car from Hertz there. We next spent 5 nights in Tuscany at Frances Lodge on the outskirts of Siena. We wanted to stay in the countryside but close to Siena, and central enough for drives to the medieval hill towns. The Lodge was perfect for us. I would not be in Tuscany without a car, nor in Florence with one! We finished the trip with four nights in Riomaggiore in the Cinque Terre. Click on my name for a trip report if interested. Congratulations.